Kallis leads South Africa to victory against England

Kallis leads South Africa to victory against England

CHESTER-LE-STREET: Jacques Kallis guided South Africa to a seven-wicket win over World Twenty20 champions England in the first Twenty20 international at Chester-le-Street on Saturday. The Proteas were in trouble at 29 for three, chasing a seemingly modest 119 for victory. But opener Kallis, returning to international duty after being rested from the drawn one-day series between the two countries, made 48 not out of 44 balls with seven fours.
Together with left-hander JP Duminy (47 not out) he shared an unbroken stand of 90 in 91 deliveries as the Proteas, who won with an over to spare, went 1-0 up in a three-match series ahead of this month’s World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka. South Africa saw hard-hitting opener Richard Levi caught in the slips off Jade Dernbach and Twenty20 international debutant Faf du Plessis lbw to fast bowler Steven Finn. De Villiers, who helped Hashim Amla add 172 in South Africa’s seven-wicket win in the fifth one-day international at Trent Bridge on Wednesday which squared that series at 2-2, was then caught behind by Craig Kieswetter, a former Proteas junior international, off South Africa-born seamer Dernbach for 10. South Africa were now 29 for three and England, all but out of the contest at the mid-innings break, were now very in the game.
But if South Africa could produce one decent partnership bat they would win and in world-class all-rounder Kallis and left-hander Duminy they had the men for the job in the absence of the rested Amla. England Twenty20 captain Stuart Broad, like Kallis rested from the one-dayers, brought back Finn in a bid to break the stand but to no avail. Ultimately England’s 118 for seven -- their third lowest total in this format – did not give their bowlers enough of a score to defend. Spin bowling, long regarded as the the Proteas’ Achilles heel, accounted for four England wickets with off-break bowler Johan Botha (two for 19) and left-armer Robin Peterson (two for 27), strking after de Villiers won the toss.
Meanwhile ever-reliable fast bowler Dale Steyn took one for 13 in his maximum four overs. At 85 for seven, England were in danger of posting their worst Twenty20 total before an unbroken stand of 33 in 27 balls between Broad and Graeme Swann, who both finished on 18 not out, gave them a foothold in the match. No England batsman made more than opener Kieswetter’s 25. England’s collapse started with a needless run out. Alex Hales, who made an England Twenty20 best 99 against the West Indies in June after replacing the still exiled Kevin Pietersen, charged down the pitch for a non-existent single and, turning back, was run out by Kallis’s direct hit on the stumps. Kieswetter then fell when he was plumb lbw to Botha’s first ball.
And Ravi Bopara, who averaged just 5.50 with the bat during the one-dayers fell cheaply in familiar fashion when he edged a good length Steyn delivery to Botha at slip. Botha then struck again when he bowled dangerman Eoin Morgan for 10, after the former Ireland left-hander bottom edged a pull-sweep. Peterson bowled Jos Buttler before fellow young gun Jonathan Bairstow holed out off paceman Albie Morkel. Then a well-judged catch by Kallis saw Peterson dismiss Patel. The series continues in Manchester on Monday. afp

Amla achieves eighth best rating of 901

Amla achieves eighth best rating of 901

Ajmal becomes number-one ranked ODI bowler

Staff Report

LAHORE: Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal has moved up two places to replace teammate Mohammad Hafeez as the number-one ranked bowler in the ICC Player Rankings for ODI bowlers. The latest rankings released on Thursday incorporate both the Pakistan-Australia and England-South Africa ODI series. Saeed was the highest wicket-taker in the series against Australia. He picked 10 wickets at an economy rate of 3.41 with an average of 9.9 in the series. His overall rating of 759 is his career-best. Meanwhile, Hafeez has slipped to second position in the bowlers’ table. Hafeez achieved his career-best rating of 762 during the series, but finally ended at 747. However, Hafeez has moved up a place to second in the ICC Player Rankings for all-rounders with a career-best rating of 413. South Africa paceman Lonwabo Tsotsobe, who headed the bowlers’ table before the two series began, is now ranked third.

Other bowlers dropping down the rankings include Morne Morkel in fifth (down by one), Steven Finn in sixth (down by one), Shahid Afridi in 19th (down by three), Tim Bresnan in 38th(down by six) and Sohail Tanvir in 56th (down by nine). South Africa paceman Dale Steyn has re-entered the top 10 in the bowlers’ table. He has moved up four places to 10th.

Steyn’s teammate Robin Peterson, who was the highest wicket-taker on either side in the series against England with seven wickets, has moved up 12 places to a career-best 29th. Peterson’s overall rating of 575 is his career-best.

The other bowlers to make upward movements include Mitchell Johnson in 18th (up by one) Wayne Parnell in 44th (up by 16), Abdur Rehman in 61st (up by 12), Mitchell Starc in 76th (up by 55), Jade Dernbach in 79th (up by 10), Ravi Bopara in 80th (up by 27) and James Pattinson in 87th (up by 47).

ODI batsmen: South Africa’s Hashim Amla, who was the highest run-getter on either side in the series against England with 335 runs, has consolidated his position as the number-one ranked batsman, followed by Virat Kohli in second position and AB de Villiers in third. Amla’s overall rating of 901 is the highest of his career and is the eighth best in history. Jonathan Trott in fifth (up by two) and Michael Clarke in seventh (up by one) have also made gains in the top ten of the latest batting table. Michael Hussey, meanwhile, is now tenth in the table, moving up four places. The other batsmen to make upward movements include Eoin Morgan in 13th (up by five), Ian Bell in 32nd (up by five), Mohammad Hafeez in 42nd (up by one), Craig Kieswetter in 43rd (up by five), George Bailey in 49th (up by 21), Azhar Ali in 52nd (up by 21), Asad Shafiq in 55th (up by seven) and Nasir Jamshed in 78th (up by 35). Pakistan wicket-keeper batsman Kamran Akmal has re-entered the rankings at 78th.

England captain Alastair Cook has moved down two places to eighth. The other batsmen losing ground include Jean-Paul Duminy in 22nd (down by three), Graeme Smith in 26th (down by five), Misbahul Haq in 28th (down by one), David Hussey in 34th (down by two), David Warner in 36th (down by one), Shahid Afridi in 44th (down by two), Ravi Bopara in 49th (down by five) and Francois du Plessis in 73rd (down by 10). The ICC Player Rankings for all-rounders is still headed by Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan.

Anderson called up to England’s T20 squad

Anderson called up to England’s T20 squad

LONDON: England pace bowler James Anderson has been called into his country’s squad for the Twenty20 series against South Africa as cover for Steven Finn. Anderson has not played for England in the shortest form of the game since his appearance against South Africa in a match at Centurion in November 2009. The 30-year-old is not part of the England squad for the ICC World Twenty20 tournament that starts in Sri Lanka later this month.

But Finn missed the final one-day international against the Proteas in Nottingham on Wednesday after being hampered by a stiff back and that convinced the selectors to draft in Anderson. The England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed the news of Anderson’s call-up in a statement: “James Anderson has been called into the squad for the T20 series against South Africa as cover for Steven Finn who has a stiff back.” England face South Africa in three Twenty20 internationals, the first is at Durham on Saturday, the second at Old Trafford on Monday and the third at Edgbaston on Wednesday.

England legend Flintoff aims to become boxer

England legend Flintoff aims to become boxer

LONDON: Andrew Flintoff made his name by smashing sixes and taking wickets during a memorable career as English cricket’s premier all-rounder and he will get the chance to deliver some more knock-out blows after revealing his plan to become a professional boxer. Flintoff, who was forced to quit cricket due to a series of injuries, is set to fight in a heavyweight bout at Manchester’s MEN Arena on November 30 and is being trained by former world featherweight champion Barry McGuigan and McGuigan’s son Shane in preparation for the bout.

The 34-year-old’s experiences as a budding fighter are being turned into a two-part television documentary called The Gloves Are Off and he can’t wait to step into the ring after missing the buzz of professional sport since his retirement from cricket in 2010. “This is an amazing opportunity to try a sport that I love, to be tutored by a man I respect and admire and, at the age of 34, the chance to become a professional sportsman again,” Flintoff said. “It’s a huge challenge – probably the biggest I have ever undertaken, especially in such a short time-frame. “I have a long road ahead and a lot of work in front of me. The stakes are high.” Flintoff still needs to be granted a licence by the British Boxing Board of Control before he can fight and Robert Smith, the organisation’s general secretary, said the former Lancashire star had not yet gone through the application process.

However, the licence application process normally lasts anything up to six weeks, giving Flintoff enough time to apply in the near future and fight on the November date. Flintoff, who became a global cricket icon after helping England beat Australia to win the Ashes in 2005, would not be the first professional sportsman to undertake a boxing career with no experience. Former Sheffield United footballer Curtis Woodhouse made his boxing debut in 2002 and has won 16 of his 20 contests. Flintoff played in 79 Tests and 141 one-day internationals for England and is widely regarded as one of his country’s best ever all-rounders. afp

Pakistan could boycott ICC awards over Ajmal omission

Pakistan could boycott ICC awards over Ajmal omission

Staff Report

KARACHI: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Zaka Ashraf has reopened the debate surrounding off-spinner Saeed Ajmal’s exclusion from the International Cricket Council (ICC) awards shortlists by hinting that Pakistan’s players could boycott the awards function, to be held in Colombo on September 15, as a ‘robust protest.’ The ICC, responding to the PCB’s protest on Monday, had ruled out a rethink and the matter seemed to have ended there.

However, Ashraf’s comments suggest that the issue is still alive for Pakistan. “We are facing a lot of pressure from the public and from our former players to push for his inclusion,” Ashraf was quoted as saying. “I think the ICC should check whether the independent jury is coming up with the best name and they should not give away the due right of any player in the world. If anyone else has more wickets than Ajmal, then we are ready to withdraw our concern and instead we will support their pick. But this isn’t reflecting well of the ICC and they should rectify it. Meanwhile we probably have to give a second thought to even boycott the function as a robust protest.”

Ajmal was in the longlist for the award this year but missed out when an independent 32-member jury, that included former Pakistan captain Aamer Sohail, nominated Sri Lanka batsman Kumar Sangakkara, South Africa fast bowler Vernon Philander, Australia captain Michael Clarke and South Africa opener Hashim Amla for Test Cricketer of the Year. Ajmal took 72 Test wickets between August 4, 2011 and August 6, 2012 – the qualifying period for the award – including 24 at 14.70 as Pakistan swept aside England, the then No. 1 side in the world, 3-0 in January. He has climbed to No. 3 in the ICC Test bowling rankings and is the highest ranked spinner. After the PCB lodged the protest, the ICC refused to reconsider Ajmal’s case, saying it had no authority to change the results of the academy. The process was monitored by the independent auditor Ernst & Young, and the longlist was prepared by a five-member selection panel headed by Clive Lloyd and included Clare Connor (England), Tom Moody (Australia), Carl Hooper (West Indies) and Marvan Atapattu (Sri Lanka).

Football : European nations shift focus to 2014 World Cup

Football : European nations shift focus to 2014 World Cup

PARIS: With the dust having settled on a memorable Euro 2012, the old continent’s attention now turns towards the qualifying campaign for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, which begins in earnest on Friday. The major nations, led by reigning world and European champions Spain and a Germany side supposedly about to hit their peak, are all expected to be at the finals two years from now, but none can take their place for granted.

At least one major name always fails to qualify – much-fancied Russia missed out on South Africa 2010 while, four years earlier, Greece were the European champions but still finished fourth in their qualifying group. And the Netherlands failed to make it in 2002. The man who presided over that failure, Louis van Gaal, has just returned as coach of the Oranje after Bert van Marwijk stood down in the wake of a disastrous showing at Euro 2012. Van Gaal’s return to the helm began with a 4-2 friendly defeat to Belgium last month, and the Dutch kick-off their Group D campaign with a tricky home clash against Turkey. With only one automatic qualification slot available in each group, and the eight best runners-up advancing to play-offs, Van Gaal knows the margins between success and failure can be fine, but he is relishing the task. “This is the challenge which I have been waiting for,” he proclaimed after his appointment in July.

New France coach Didier Deschamps will be well aware of the pitfalls that await him in Group I, a five-team section also containing Spain. Les Bleus’ first competitive fixture under Deschamps is against Finland in Helsinki. “The mission is a difficult one but the objective is exciting,” said the man who lifted the World Cup as a player in 1998. “In a five-team group, it is vital that you take as many points as possible and I know full well that we cannot afford to drop many before we play Spain, who are, logically, the big favourites to win the group. The two, who met in the quarter-finals at Euro 2012, with La Roja winning 2-0, clash in Spain in October, before the return at the Stade de France in March. Far from lacking in motivation after three consecutive major tournament triumphs, Spain, who kick-off their campaign in Georgia on September 11, could be even stronger thanks to the return after a broken leg of David Villa. “Once he is fully fit he will be very important for us,” said midfielder Xabi Alonso of Spain’s all-time leading marksman, while coach Vicente Del Bosque describes Villa as “our most reputable goalscorer.”

Germany are looking to bounce back from the heartache of their Euro 2012 semi-final defeat to Italy, but anything less than first place in Group C for them would be a major surprise, even if they must come up against Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s Sweden, Ireland and Austria. “There was huge disappointment after the Euro exit, after the game against Italy. But our fans know that there is no guarantee to win a title,” insisted Loew. You can usually be guaranteed to see Germany qualify for major tournaments, though -- they have only ever lost twice in 74 World Cup qualifiers, and that formidable record is unlikely to be threatened when they entertain the Faroe Islands in Hanover on Friday. Meanwhile, Italy are out to build on a run to the final of Euro 2012 that restored a nation’s pride in the Azzurri. However, Cesare Prandelli’s side will come up against Euro quarter-finalists the Czech Republic in Group B, as well as Denmark, and veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is wary of their threat.

“On paper, we should be the favourites to win our group, but behind us there are three or four teams who are capable outsiders and we will need more than just commitment to make sure we beat them,” he said. The notoriously hard-to-please English media will closely scrutinise Roy Hodgson’s performance in charge of the national team after he commendably took them to the last eight at Euro 2012 just weeks after being appointed. Hodgson must successfully integrate young talent into his squad and make sure England negotiate Group H, which also contains Euro co-hosts Poland and Ukraine, as well as Montenegro, who gave them a scare in European Championship qualifying. Elsewhere, Portugal and Fabio Capello’s Russia will go head-to-head in Group F, and this may be the time for a Bosnia-Herzegovina side led by Vedad Ibisevic and Edin Dzeko to make it to a major tournament after coming up just short more than once in recent years. And, after a decade of failure, the time has surely come for Belgium – blessed with talents such as Eden Hazard and Marouane Fellaini – to make their return to the big time. afp

Tennis : Serena, Sharapova through to US Open semi-finals

Tennis : Serena, Sharapova through to US Open semi-finals

Roddick and Federer bow out

NEW YORK: Roger Federer was knocked out of the US Open on Wednesday when he lost a quarter-final thriller to Tomas Berdych just hours after his old rival Andy Roddick bid a tearful farewell to his tennis career. Federer was unable to conjure up any of his old magic as Berdych stormed to a surprise victory 7-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, handing the world number one his earliest exit from Flushing Meadows in nine years. Federer could not hide his disappointment after arriving in the Big Apple full of hope following his win at Wimbledon in July.

“There were so many moments I thought, man, it’s just not happening for me,” said the five-times US Open champion. “It was just a very disappointing match for me.” Roddick made his final appearance at Arthur Ashe Stadium when he lost to Juan Martin del Potro in the fourth round, while Andy Murray and Maria Sharapova both dug themselves out of trouble to stay alive on a drama-charged day at the last grand slam of the year.

Tournament favourites: Only Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic had an easy time, both romping to comfortable victories to enhance their status as the favourites for the singles titles. Djokovic was in complete control of his fourth round match against Stanislas Wawrinka, leading 6-4, 6-1, 3-1, when the Swiss called it quits in one of five matches that were held over from Tuesday because of rain. “I really don’t know exactly what it was but by the look of it, I think it was probably a dizziness or something,” said Djokovic, the only man yet to drop a set in the tournament.

Sharapova needed all her fighting qualities to come from behind and beat Marion Bartoli of France 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 and reach the semi-finals for the first time since she won in New York in 2006. Bartoli led 4-0 overnight and wrapped up the first set when play finally resumed after another morning shower but Sharapova regained her composure to win the next two and book a semi-final against world number one Victoria Azarenka. “It’s so long since I’ve been back to this stage at the US Open. A little bit of luck always helps,” the Russian said. Williams, full of confidence and self-belief, demolished Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic in less than an hour to raise hopes of an American winner after Roddick departed.

“I feel like I’m going to get more focused and serious and start playing Serena tennis in the next couple of rounds, if I get to play two rounds. That’s my goal,” she said. Williams will play Italian Sara Errani in Friday’s semis after she defeated her doubles partner Roberta Vinci 6-2, 6-4. “A quarter-final with your best friend, of course, is difficult,” said Errani. “We know each other very well, we’ve played together many times, so it was strange to see her on the other side of the net.”

Amazing comeback: Olympic champion Murray produced an extraordinary turnaround to beat Croatia’s Marin Cilic 3-6, 7-6, 6-2, 6-0 on a gusty Louis Armstrong court. The Scot lost the opening set then fell two service breaks down at 5-1 in the second, before rallying back to win, reeling off the last 11 games in a row. Serbia’s Janko Tipsarevic beat German Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 7-6, 6-2 and will face Spain’s David Ferrer in Thursday’s quarters. Djokovic will square off on Thursday night with the towering Argentine Del Potro, the 2009 US Open champion, while Murray faces Berdych, who has been a thorn in Federer’s side before, most famously in 2010 when he beat the Swiss master at Wimbledon.

“There is something in my game that he doesn’t like and it makes him struggle a bit, I would say, and maybe bring him out of his comfort zone that he always likes to be on court,” Berdych said. Roddick, the face of US men’s tennis for most of the past decade, was reduced to tears after losing 6-7, 7-6, 6-2, 6-4 to Del Potro. With his parents and wife watching from the stands, the 2003 champion said he was leaving the game with no regrets after 13 years as a professional. “I’ve loved every minute of it,” he said. “It’s been a road, a lot of ups, a lot of downs, a lot of great moments.” reuters